And edward everett



(No Model.) y W. H. WALKER.

AIR BRAKE Patented Oct. 7, 1890.

mm WWI/Afl UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE WILLIAM H. WALKER, OF MARTINEZ, GEORGIA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO PATRICK J. SULLIVAN, OF AUGUSTA, GEORGIA, AND EDWARD EVERETT, OF WILMINGTON, NORTH CAROLINA.

`AIR-BRAKE.

- SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 438,038, dated October` '7, 1890.

Application filed February 14, 1890. Serial No.v 340,489. (No model.)

vTo all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. WALKER, of Martinez, in the county of Richmond and State of Georgia, have invented a newand useful Improvement in Air-Brakes, of which the following is a specification.

My invention is an improvement relating especially to that class of steam and air brakes in which a reduction of pressure in the so- 1o called brake-pipe results in the application of the brake; and the invention seeks to provide a simple means by which to automatically effect the desired reduction of pressure in certain instances-as, for example, if the track should spread, the truck mount the rail,

an axle break, or a rail break; and the invention consists in certain features of construction and novel combinations of parts, as will be hereinafter described and claimed.

zo In the drawings, Figure lis a top plan View of a truck provided with my improvements. Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing my improvements in connection with a part of a car. Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view of the guards,

2 5 provided with the improvements. Figs. 4 and 5 are detail views showing a somewhat different construct-ion, and Fig. 6 is a sectional View on about line 6 6 of Fig. l.

Inasmuch as the brake-shoes and the devices for supporting and operating the same may be of any suitable or well-known kind,I have not thought it necessary to illustrate or describe the same.

The so-called brakepipe A may be sup- 3 5 ported on or below the framing of the car in the manner shown or in any other suitable manner. I provide this pipe A with a valve or valves B, which may be of the turn-cock variety shown, or may' be constructed after 4o the fashion of the conductors valve used in air-brakes, or may be of any other suitable construction to be opened to reduce the pressure in the'pipe or closed to maintain such pressure. A bar or connection C is arranged to operate this valve, and has a foot-like part or portion D, arranged in case of accident to engage the rail or some other part of the track and be operated thereby to open the valve B, and so reduce the pressure in the 5o brake-pipe and cause the brake to be applied.

In proceeding to describe the particular manner shown of carrying out my invention it maybe stated that it is manifest that there maybe various changes of the details of oonstruction without departing from some of the 5 5 broad principles of the invention.

The valve B is shown as a turn-valve having a crank-arm E, provided with a wrist or pin e. This pine enters the slot f of acranki arm F, which extends from a journaled shaft 6o G7 such shaft G being also provided with a crank-arm I-I, to which is connected the operating-bar or connection C, which extends thence downward and has a part or portion D arranged to be engaged by the rail or other 65 part of the track when the truck is abnor-A mally lowered in case of accident, as will be further referred to hereinafter.

The truck is shown as provided with a guard having two shoes J at the opposite sides, one 7o of such shoes at each side being provided in its under side with a groove or seat K, for the foot portion D, which partially fits in such groove or seat, as shown, openings lo k leading up from'respectively the inner and 75 outer ends of the seat K through the shoe. The connecting-bar O extends down through opening 7c, has its foot D tted in seat K, and has a small upward extension d, which projects up through opening la', and is threaded 8o to receive the nut d', which may be set tov vary the distance to which the bar C may descend and consequently limit the extent of the movement of such bar.y

In operation upward movement of bar C will by crank II turn the shaftGto cause the arm or crank Fto rock and so turn and open the valve B by means of the arm E, as will be understood from Fig. 6. The purpose of the guard-shoes is in case of accident-such as the breakage of a Wheel or axle or spreading of the track-the shoes will fall upon and slide along the rails and operate to permit a certain movement of the car and also serve to brake the same and cause it to stop. 95

It will be understood that the safety-guard will hold the car on the track in any contingency, and that at the same time through the mechanism described the brakes will be instantly thrown on, thereby stopping the car reo yor engineer.

as quickly as if thrown on by the conductor Manifestly any suitable valve may be used instead of that shown, and such valve may be used in any suitable connection, so its opening will effect the desired reduction of pressure in the brake-pipe. It will also'be seen that the diagonally-opposite guard-shoes support the foot portions or trips of the operating-bar, so thatvwhether the car is moving in one or the other direction one of the front shoes has a connection extended from it to a valve in the brake-pipe, and as such valves and connections are both alike the description of one will answer for both.

The pin e of arm E, which enters slot f of arm F, fits loosely in such slot and is of sufficient length to permit it to remain properly in such slot when the truck is rounding a cur-ve.-

It may be preferred in some instances to use different forms-of4 valve at the opposite a turn-plug valve beingused at one side and a lift-valve at the other side.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new is-A` 1. The combination,with the truck and the guard-shoe, of a brake-operating-attachment having atrip foot or portion supported below said shoe and arranged to be actuated by the railwhere the shoe drops thereon, substantially as set forth.l

p 2. The combination ofl the vcar-truck provided ywith a guard having4 shoes, of the brakepipe having a valve and a bar or connection arranged to operate such valve and havinga foot-like part or portion projectingy below-the guard-shoe andarranged to be elevated by the rail when the shoe drops onto such rail,

substantially as set forth.

3. The-combination of the truck, the guard having ashoe provided in its under side with a groove or seat, the brake-pipe having a valve, and the bar or connection for operating such valve, saidbar or connection` having a foot-like portion fitting partially within the p groove or seat in the guard-shoe, all substantially as set forth.

4. The combination, with the truck and its i guard having a slioeof an air-brake attachment having a trip foot or portion supported below said shoe and arranged to be actuated by the rail when the shoe drops thereon, substantially as set forth.

5. rPhe combination of the truck, the guard having a shoe, the brake-piper having the valve, the bar or -connection arranged to opgroove or seat of the guard-shoe and a threaded portion., extended above such shoe,

Sand a nut onY the said threaded'portion, all substantially as and for the purposes set forth. sidesv of the truckas shown in Figs. 4 and 5.,

7. The combination ofthe truck, the guardshoe provided'in its under side with a groove or seat, and the brake-operating attachment having a foot-like portion iittingV partially withinthe groove or seat inthe guard-shoe, all substantially as described, and for the purposes setforth.

8. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore described, of the truck having the guardformed with a shoe and havinggin `the under side thereof avgroove or seat, the brakepipe having a valve, the shaft having two crank-arms, one of which is connected with the valve, and the bary or connection con nected with the other crank-arm andhaving a foot-like portion tting partiallywithinthe groove or seat of the .guard-shoe, allsubstantially as and for the purposes set forth.

9. In an apparatus substantially as described, a guard having two-shoes over-y each rail and having the diagonally-opposite .shoes provided with trips or foot-like portions connected with and arranged to actuate the airbrake mechanism, substantially as set forth.

WILLIAM H. VALKER.

Witnesses:

JOHN S. DAVIDSON, J. B. KEEVER. 

